"Alright, the hidden lackeys have already been knocked out. We have thirty minutes," Orochimaru said softly as he and Itachi stepped out from behind a tree.
"Impressive..."
Hearing Orochimaru's words and sensing the two ANBU members silently subdued, Itachi couldn't help but feel a twinge of admiration.
He was good at killing, and knocking someone out wasn't beyond him either.
But to see Orochimaru incapacitate someone so effortlessly, even timing it perfectly so no one would notice? That was truly remarkable.
"Heh, it's just a matter of combining certain drugs with a little help from our small friend," Orochimaru responded modestly, as usual, to Itachi's praise.
The two approached the bedside of a frail, skeletal Naruto, momentarily stunned.
This generation's Jinchūriki sure had it rough...
"This child is truly pitiable," Orochimaru murmured, placing a hand lightly on Naruto's wrist. He quickly realized it wasn't an illness causing Naruto's condition.
Itachi watched Orochimaru's feigned expertise in medical techniques and merely smiled silently.
"But Itachi, why did you want to see this child? Is there something special about him? If nothing unexpected happens, he'll likely remain confined in Konoha for life, only being used in times of war," Orochimaru asked, curious about Itachi's intent as the latter stared in a daze.
"You seem to know everything," Itachi replied quietly, snapping out of his thoughts.
"Across the major villages, nearly every Jinchūriki is treated the same," Orochimaru said lightly, addressing Itachi's sarcasm.
"Who are you?"
As the two chatted, Naruto, lying in bed, rubbed his sleepy eyes and sat up.
Instinctively, Orochimaru's aura locked onto Naruto, enveloping him with killing intent.
"Orochimaru, don't do this. He's just a child," Itachi intervened, stopping Orochimaru's reflexive actions.
"I didn't expect this child to wake up. Well, now we're exposed," Orochimaru joked, retracting his oppressive presence.
Itachi ignored Orochimaru's teasing and approached Naruto, gently ruffling his hair.
"Go back to sleep. This is just a dream..."
Naruto quickly fell back into slumber.
"Let's go," Itachi said softly, looking at the sleeping Naruto.
He felt a strange unease in his heart, though he couldn't pinpoint the source.
Originally, Itachi thought Danzo's description of Naruto's misery referred to the tragic circumstances from the original timeline. But now it seemed Naruto's current situation was even more pitiful.
"I wonder if you can still smile so brightly, Naruto..."
As they exited the room, Itachi glanced back at the boy on the bed, silently sighing before closing the door.
With ANBU surveillance in place, he couldn't do anything to help Naruto.
"Do you know that kid?"
The two didn't return to Orochimaru's hideout. Instead, they left Konoha through a root tunnel.
Just after leaving, Orochimaru asked with some curiosity.
"No, I don't. I just spent some time with the Akatsuki recently. Since they're targeting the Tailed Beasts, I figured I'd check on him," Itachi replied nonchalantly.
In truth, seeing Naruto in that state stirred something within Itachi.
Part of him wanted to guide Naruto into defecting from Konoha and destroying the village that had become so corrupt.
But as soon as the thought arose, memories of countless people he cared about came flooding back—people full of vitality and charm.
They shouldn't have to pay for the decay of the village or the actions of foolish individuals.
The biggest problem, though, was that convincing Naruto to defect would be difficult. Itachi didn't have the time to craft such a plan.
After all, Itachi hadn't forgotten that Naruto was the reincarnation of Asura. And Asura... well, let's just say he wasn't the easiest to deal with, which didn't exactly inspire confidence in Itachi.
A day later, the two returned to Orochimaru's hideout.
Itachi immediately retreated to his room and hastily retrieved a scroll he kept close at all times.
Inside the container lay a pair of beautiful Mangekyo Sharingan, and the sight of them filled him with satisfaction.
Without hesitation, Itachi took out one of the Mangekyo Sharingan and eagerly implanted it into his right eye socket.
Had it not been for concerns about unforeseen complications, he would've done this back in Konoha.
The faint green light emanating from his hand as he used a crude healing technique made Itachi grumble inwardly.
But as Orochimaru had mentioned, this basic medical ninjutsu was sufficient. Anything more advanced, like the Mystical Palm Technique, would've been far too time-consuming to master.
And it's not that useful anyway. If there's time to learn palm-based ninjutsu, why not just summon a slug or fuse some Hashirama cells instead? Wouldn't that be better?
As for Itachi, skipping dinner and rushing back to his room to swap eyes left Orochimaru feeling somewhat helpless.
He could only eat alone in boredom.
...
Half an hour later, Orochimaru still hadn't finished eating when Itachi emerged from his room.
"Did you get the eyes transplanted? How are you feeling? Do you still have that uncomfortable sensation?"
Looking at the now-perfect young man before him, Orochimaru asked softly.
Itachi's expression was slightly peculiar in response to Orochimaru's concerned look.
The eyes were indeed complete, and there was an ongoing strange sensation in them, as if an endless surge of power was continuously being activated on a deeper level.
But the problem was here—transforming the Mangekyō Sharingan into the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan seemed to require time for the change to fully settle.
And he wasn't entirely sure how long that would take.
Additionally, he noticed that the ocular jutsu in his eyes seemed to have undergone some changes. Although they were still in the process of fusing, he wasn't sure about the specifics of the new abilities...
This kind of change wasn't exactly something he could easily explain to Orochimaru.
...
"For now, I don't feel anything unusual. I'll have to gradually figure it out," Itachi said quietly to ease Orochimaru's worry when he saw him ready to ask more questions.
"Oh, by the way, about that serum of yours that turned Shisui and me into 'biological brothers,' how far does it go?"
Curious about the changes to his ocular jutsu, Itachi asked.
After all, whether it was Madara or Sasuke, their ocular abilities didn't seem to change much after an eye transplant.
The abilities always reflected their inner selves.
...
"Itachi, you've asked the right person! Let me tell you, the bond between you and Shisui is closer than that of actual brothers…"
"You and Sasuke are indeed biological brothers, but there are still some genetic differences."
"But you and Shisui, well, I made sure you could perfectly use his eyes by modifying your DNA to be nearly identical to his. Essentially, you're even more compatible than twins…"
Hearing Itachi's question, Orochimaru spoke with some pride. It was clear this serum was one of his more satisfying creations.
"Oh? Is that so…"
After hearing Orochimaru's explanation, Itachi felt a bit awkward. He seemed to understand why his ocular jutsu was undergoing changes.
Good grief—both Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi had mutated. Whether this was a blessing or a curse, he wasn't sure…